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SOUTH SIDE JAMAICA, QUEENS, NY. November 1991.
"I'm just so tired of New York Ma. Ready to get out of here soon as my applications go through." Deanna sighed while curling her mother's hair in their kitchen. She had never been outside of Jamaica, Queens, New York. However, she yearned for something more.
"I understand that, but look Deanna, me and your uncles paved our way through New York. This is our stomping ground, our home." Her mother, Raq, looked up at her in the mirror. Raq was a queen pin in Queens. Raquel never let a man undermine her brilliance.
"Mama, it was years ago let it go. You see where it got Kanan. Running around thinking he know shit but he doesn't." Deanna expressed her frustrations. Her brother, Kanan, had just gotten booked on a conspiracy to murder charge and their mother was still out finessing and scheming.
"You better watch your mouth." Her mother turned around quickly, looking at Deanna. "All I'm saying is, you can build your empire out here too Dee. Never forget where you come from." Popping a piece of gum in her mouth her mother sighed.
"Whatever ma, I'm done speaking on it." Shrugging it off she turned to grab the roller sets. Her mother was stuck in her ways. She had everything planned out for her and her children. Looking up, Deanna seen her uncles coming through the front door.
"Marvin stay the fuck away from my studio. I'm so fucking serious nigga." Lou spat at him while opening the screen door.
"Uncle Lou Lou." She smiled at her uncle. He was her favorite, he was younger and was the only one who could understand her. He too, tried to leave before, it never worked. He understood her frustrations as well. In his words, you born in this shit, only thing could take you out is God himself Dee.
"Damn just forget about your favorite uncle huh niece?" Her uncle Marvin shook his head waving her off before sitting down in her lounge area. He was her mother's older brother, yet, he abided by Raq and her operations.
"What? Ya Muva in here tripping again?" Lou shook his head knowing how his sister could be. He hugged his niece and kissed her cheek. "Raq let up off her."
"Y'all not going to tell me how to raise my damn daughter. Not you or him." Her mother caught and attitude before grabbing her pager out of her purse.
"You do it to me all the time with Juke, so why not?" Marvin shook his head while going thru the Ebony magazines that were placed on the coffee table.
Opening the roller set, she began rolling her mother's curls inside of the rollers, popping the top back on. "All I'm saying is we don't have to be stuck in Queens all our life. Shit makes life mad pointless."
